Power diners in San Francisco know all about where to get their hands on crackly-skinned, Beijing-style roast duck, but one of the best-known spots is undoubtedly Mister Jiu’s in San Francisco’s Chinatown. It’s a frequently referenced dish in chef Brandon Jew’s repertoire, earning praise in the Michelin Guide, receiving its own ode in Eater SF, and even spawning a cheeky t-shirt declaring it the top roast duck in America.
Whether you believe that sentiment to be true or hyperbole, diners can find out for themselves as Mister Jiu’s is finally unleashing its roast duck from the tasting menu and launched two new options for diners: a four-course, duck-centric, banquet-style menu and a limited availability (read: very limited) a la carte option at the bar. Mister Jiu’s switched to a tasting menu format in 2023, and while it made the restaurant more sustainable and allowed the team to curate a dining experience for guests, it relegated the hit duck dish to an add-on component.
The writer scored crispy roast duck at the bar at Mister Jiu’s last year.
Dianne de Guzman
Now, diners can experience the Beijing duck in its umpteenth update and in all its glory — meaning, with pancakes, peanut butter hoisin, duck liver mousse, and cucumber — as part of a four-course dinner, at a much lower price of $125 per person. It’s a small gift to diners and coincides with the news that the tasting menu is now expanding to eight courses for $175.
But if circumstances coincide with luck, as mine did last year, the secret is that the duck has been on and off the a la carte menu at the bar since the 2023 menu change. Dipping into the bar at Mister Jiu’s after a San Francisco outing on the water, it felt like such a boon to order the duck at the bar with a friend, cocktails in hand, for a Michelin-starred experience a la minute (i.e. no reservations and no advance planning on my end). I haven’t seen the duck on the a la carte menu since, but a rep for the restaurant confirmed that it can still be ordered at the bar, although it’s subject to availability — namely, you’re third in line behind the already-ordered ducks in the dining room. Still, if you’re willing to roll the dice, this isn’t a bad bet to place and perhaps your next Move this summer.
Mister Jiu’s (28 Waverly Place) is open from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations are available via Tock.
If you’re lucky, you might be able to score the duck a la carte at the bar.
Nicola Parisi
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